The Darkest Night
by KanbaraGirl77
Summary: The youngest sister of Queen Sarabi, Akello makes a bold move to protect the cubs after Mufasa's death. But Mufasa's daughter isn't so willing to listen...a oneshot fanfic. Rated M for mention of rape.


The Darkest Night-a Lion King one-shot

(Happens shortly after Scar becomes King of Pride Rock.)

?'s PoV

I knew this would happen someday; Scar taking over the Pride, acting like he was King all along. He said that Mufasa had been killed in a stampede and that he tried to save him…

Bullshit; he killed him, I just know it. But I have no proof to show everyone, so I can do nothing but watch as he assumes the throne, letting those filthy, disease-spreading hyenas waltz on in like they owned the place all along.

Sarabi took Mufasa's death the hardest…but the fact Simba could be dead too was too much for her and she broke down. My sisters and me could do nothing to ease the heartbreak she was feeling. As she calmed down and feel asleep, a cub came up to me. He was Scar's son-Mheetu and looked just like him.

His expression broke my heart: shaking like he had seen something traumatizing. Wanting to know why he was upset, I pulled him closer into a hug. "What's wrong?" I asked in a whisper, hoping that Scar didn't hear me or his son's crying. He looked up at me and said the one thing I feared:

"Dad's been acting weird to us…he keeps saying he doesn't want any of us around anymore." My heart froze; "Aunt Akello, I think he…he wants us dead…" A sinking feeling entered my heart, sometimes when rouge male took over a pride; he killed all of the cubs that weren't his to ensure that only his bloodline would rule.

But Mheetu was Scar's son…why would he want him dead? He was his heir…I shook my head, I had no time to ask myself questions; I had to get the pride cubs to safety and away from Pride Rock. If Scar were to do such a thing…

Mheetu's voice snapped me out of my daze, "Akello?" he asked as I picked him up by the scruff of his neck. I didn't answer and kept walking on the outside of the Rock, making sure not to be seen by the new king or his henchmen. A plan began to form in my mind, a plan that would be very risky to pull off…but it had to work.

Soon, I had arrived to the spot where Mufasa and Sarabi's daughter Shani loved to hang out. I knew she would be here alone, grieving the loss of her father and brother. Stopping her crying, she looked up at me with red, tear-filled eyes.

"Akello? What are you doing here? And with Scar's son?" she seemed confused as to why I was here. I placed Mheetu down and spoke to her, staring her right in her eyes. "Shani, you are the daughter of the late King. You need to take his place as ruler of Pride Rock, not that fool. You are the rightful ruler." I said this with a little more force than I should have used, as she moved back and looked towards the ground in sadness.

Mheetu tilted his head in confusion, "What do you mean by that, auntie?" He looked at me, confused and scared like before. The wind began to pick up, and a cold breeze blew past us. I shivered; I hated the cold. I really did.

Eventually, Shani responded to my question, "…I don't want to be ruler…that was Simba's right, not mine." she shuffled her paws on the dirt, avoiding my gaze. Disappointed, I charged towards her and pinned her to the ground, snarling in anger. Does not realize the danger we are all in?

"Do you not realize what Scar is planning!?" I snarled, "Now that he's King, he going to take out what he sees as competition! He's after the cubs, even his own! They're the future of this pride, and yet you don't even want to try and stand up for what's right!? How long are you going to stay in that self-defeating attitude, you're our last hope, Shani!" My words so far seemed to be having an effect on her and she stopped crying,

"…Just what do you want me to do?" she asked as she stood up, pushing me off her. Mheetu, who had been quiet, spoke up. "Dad…he really is going to kill me and the others…" he had a horrified expression on his face, one that made something snap inside me. Once again, I turned to face Shani, "Will you listen now to what I have to say, Shani?" The princess stared at me and slowly nodded, no longer upset. Her face now had a determined look, one that Mufasa had when he was alive.

I smiled and came closer, "Okay, here's what I have planned. Shani, I want you to gather the cubs and take them to Malka's Pride. His mother will take you in." She looked at me with shock, never had anyone given her a task of this magnitude. I continued with the rest of the plan and soon, we finished talking and set out to find the rest of the cubs.

Like I thought, they were inside a small den underneath Pride Rock with Sarafina, hiding from Scar and his hyenas. Tama, Tojo and his sisters were there too. She soon saw me,

"…Akello? Why is Mheetu with you, I thought he was-!" I placed my paw on her mouth to silence her. It would be too risky for anyone else to hear,

"Sarafina, Shani is going to take the cubs." her eyes widened with shock as she looked at Mheetu, and then the rest of her children. It was then I noticed that Nala and Nilla were not there. "Where is Nala and Nilla, aren't they supposed to be with you?" Sarafina lowered her head, upset and unhappy with what I had just asked. Her ears lowered, flat against her head as she cried tears of pain. What I heard next filled me with fear,

"…Scar took them. He said he wouldn't let them leave or he'd kill them." My heart sank; Nala and her sickly sister were in grave danger. It would be too risky to rescue them; we would be discovered and the cubs would be killed. I sighed; I had hoped to get all of the cubs to safety, but Nala and Nilla were stuck here. Mheetu's mother wiped her tears away and started to wake the cubs up. Kula was the first to awake,

"Momma, what are waking me up for?" she said yawning as she sat up. The other cubs soon woke up, each complaining. I made a headcount: Mheetu, Chumvi, Kula, Turiko, Kujo, Tama, Tojo, his two sisters and two other cubs were here. Good, they were fine. I gave Shani a look and told her to take the cubs, ignoring the panicked cries from Kula and her siblings.

"I'll stall Scar as long as I can, but you need to hurry!" I hissed, flicking my tail as I left the den…

I had to think of a plan in case Scar found out about what we were doing. He'd kill us for sure if he found out that we were trying to bring the cubs to safety. Fear began to paralyze me, but I forced it down as I walked back up Pride Rock. I would not allow Scar to kill my niece and the others, I would not allow it!

' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '

Shani's PoV

Just why did aunt Akello trust me with such a task? I'm the clumsiest lioness in the pride for god's sake! This was insane; we'd be killed in no time! I stopped to check on the cubs, each one of them complaining about being woken up.

They had no idea how dire this was. They were naïve to what was going on and where I was leading them. We kept walking until Tojo cried out, "Shani, help! My sisters-!" he wailed in fear. I whirled around to see a horrifying sight, Tojo's sisters on the ground bleeding.

"They won't move…so cold…" he whimpered as I walked up to check on them. As soon as I touched them, I knew that they were dead. Tojo asked if they were okay, but I shook my head, explaining that they had died from a snake's bite. The young cub was about to scream when Kujo covered his mouth, berating him for almost exposing them.

The other cubs agreed with him and we started to move forward, me carrying the grieving brother in my jaws. We had no choice but to leave their bodies behind buried under the dirt. If they found us know, everything Akello and I had planned would be ruined.

So, we walked. Walked for hours at a time, only stopping to rest, drink, or eat food. We couldn't afford to laze about lest they find us. Pride Rock could no longer be seen from the path we were on, the horizon as flat as the ground. Were we getting closer to Malka's Pride?

One day, as we stopped to rest, Turiko and Kula informed me that Tama had gone to a water hole nearby and hadn't come back yet. Alarmed, I told them to hide and went to go find her. Tama was an outgoing cub and wandered off a lot. After searching for a while, I found her with another cub, one that we had been searching for-Malka…

' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '

Akello's PoV

I knew what the consequences would be when Scar found out about Shani's little group of cubs. The dark male glared at me with rage; rage that he hadn't been able to get rid of his competition, rage at me for foiling his plan, rage at me…for defying him. He circled around me, never letting me leave what had been Mufasa's den. The nerve of him sleeping in here made me want to vomit in disgust.

"Akello, my dear…" he began in a sickeningly-sweet voice, "…You really shouldn't lie to me, you know…I am the king now…" He suddenly grabbed my jaw harshly, digging his claws into my skin. This bastard wanted Shani and the cubs dead, even if it meant killing his own offspring for his own gains. I can only imagine what they're going through right now.

"You don't have a choice, you know. One way or another…I will make you talk." he let go of my jaw, pushed me to the ground and towered over me with a sickening grin. My gut flipped around and knotted up, but even though I was afraid…I wouldn't rat out my niece even if I was raped…

My dear niece…I hope you and the cubs find safety…please survive…

This is my sacrifice to you, daughter of Mufasa. May you find happiness away from your cruel uncle…because your other uncle Ruko is no longer here…


End file.
